Fallow Deer

Fallow Deer (Dama vulgaris), a partially domesticated deer kept in parks in Britain. Its home appears to be the south of Europe and the north of Africa; but there is no exact knowledge as to how it was introduced into the north of Europe. When adult it stands about 3 feet high at the shoulder; the summer coat in both sexes is yellowish-brown spotted all over white, and in the winter the colouring becomes more sombre. The darker variety is said to have been introduced from Norway by James I. The venison is much esteemed. Only the buck has antlers; these appear in the second year, increasing in development till the sixth, when the animal is a "complete buck." They then have two tines, and are palmated in the upper parts, the expanded portions giving off snags on the posterior surface. In the Persian Fallow Deer (D. mesopotamica) the palmation is at the base instead of at the extremity.